Emergency medicine clinics of North America
-
Emerg. Med. Clin. North Am. · Feb 2020
ReviewThe Emergency Evaluation and Management of Pediatric Extremity Fractures.
Approximately one-third of children sustain a fracture before the age of 16 years; however, their unique anatomy and healing properties often result in a good outcome. This article focuses on the diagnosis and management of pediatric extremity injuries. The article describes the anatomic features and healing principles unique to children and discusses pediatric upper and lower extremity fractures and presents evidence-based and standard practice for their management. Finally, the article describes the conditions under which emergency physicians are likely to miss pediatric fractures by highlighting specific examples and discussing the general factors that lead to these errors.
-
Emerg. Med. Clin. North Am. · Feb 2020
ReviewThe Emergent Evaluation and Treatment of Shoulder, Clavicle, and Humerus Injuries.
Shoulder pain is a common presentation in the emergency department. The list of differential diagnoses is broad. This article summarizes common diagnoses of shoulder pain, including bony, infectious, and connective tissue pathologies and their proper treatment. It also reviews which shoulder pain conditions are emergency diagnoses and need immediate treatment and which diagnoses need conservative management and outpatient follow-up.
-
Traumatic injuries of the hip and pelvis are commonly encountered in the emergency department. This article equips all emergency medicine practitioners with the knowledge to expertly diagnose, treat, and disposition these patients. Pelvic fractures occurring in young patients tend to be associated with high-energy mechanisms and polytrauma. Pelvic and hip fractures in the elderly are often a result of benign trauma but are associated with significant morbidity and mortality.
-
Emerg. Med. Clin. North Am. · Feb 2020
ReviewEmergency Medicine Orthopedic Assessment: Pearls and Pitfalls.
Acute musculoskeletal injuries are commonly seen in our emergency departments, and are commonly missed. There are many reasons for more missed injures and a significant one is over-reliance on radiographs. ⋯ That injury must be understood in the context of the patient, because older and much younger patients have weaker bone. Finally, the physical examination is instrumental in localizing the pathology and is essential to put radiograph results in the proper clinical context.
-
Knee and leg injuries are extremely common presentations to the emergency department. Understanding the anatomy of the knee, particularly the vasculature and ligamentous structures, can help emergency physicians (EPs) diagnose and manage these injuries. Use of musculoskeletal ultrasonography can further aid EPs through the diagnostic process. Proper use of knee immobilizers can also improve long-term patient outcomes.